Not applicable.
Not applicable.
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a longitudinally extending sealing strip for providing a seal between the surround of an opening and a closure member for the opening, the sealing strip comprising a longitudinally extending mounting portion incorporating resilient reinforcement means, and a longitudinally extending sealing portion on the mounting portion, the mounting portion and the resilient reinforcement means being locally stressed lengthwise at a position or positions corresponding to bends or curves in the surround. The invention also relates to a method of making a longitudinally extending sealing strip for providing a seal between the surround of an opening and a closure member for the opening, the sealing strip comprising a longitudinally extending mounting portion incorporating resilient reinforcement means, and a longitudinally extending sealing portion on the mounting portion, the method including the step of locally stressing the mounting portion and the resilient reinforcement means lengthwise at a position or positions corresponding to bends or curves in the surround.
2. Description of the Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 35 C.F.R. 1.97 and 1.98.
Such a sealing strip and such a method are known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,249,353. In this known strip and method, the strip is locally stretched lengthwise at the said position or positions. Therefore, when the strip is bent to follow a bend or curve, the resultant lengthwise compression of the sealing portion tends to return the stress therein towards the original value (before the initial tension), with the aim of avoiding xe2x80x9cbucklingxe2x80x9d of the sealing portion. However, the success of this process depends on the extent to which the initial tension matches the subsequent compression.
According to the invention, the sealing strip as first set forth above is characterised in that the mounting portion and the resilient reinforcement means are locally stressed lengthwise by being locally compressed lengthwise at the said position or positions.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,343,121 (Kruschwitz et al) shows an arrangement in which a longitudinal window glass mounting arrangement for a vehicle is compressed while it is being mounted on a window surround so as to be held compressed thus allowing the window glass to xe2x80x9cfloatxe2x80x9d slightly in the mounting arrangement, the mounting arrangement being compressed throughout its length.
According to the invention, also, the method as first set forth above is characterised in that the lengthwise locally stressing step comprises the step of locally compressing the mounting portion and the resilient reinforcement means lengthwise at the said position or positions.
The local compression of the mounting portion and the resilient reinforcement means has the effect of shifting the neutral bending axis of the strip towards the inside of the bends or curves, reducing the tendency of the sealing portion to buckle and helping to ensure that the sealing portion maintains the correct positional relationship with the mounting portion.